Newbie needs quick digital camera

[johnsmith]

Hi, I just joined the forum.

I already have a digital camera, but I need more options and manual settings as I am getting better at photography, my main interest is Sporting Photography.

I need a camera with a quick start up time - I would like ready to take photos within 3 secs.
I also need a very high shutter speed, 1/7000 would be nice and not much shutter lag.

But the important thing is...As of yet, I do not want an SLR!

Heres a photo I snapped of a Dragon Fly, I had to clean up the sign it is perching on with PSP, but it came out well.

[adina]

What are you shooting with now? If we knew what you were using, we'd be able to recommend something that may be a step up.

Why don't you want an slr? For maybe just a bit more than you'd pay for a higher end p&s, you could get a rebel or whatever the nikon equivilant is.

adina

[another view]

I'd agree about a DSLR too, slower DSLR's will still work a lot faster than fast compacts - in my experience at least.

1/8000 and 1/4000 would be common shutter speeds, but I rarely use something that fast. On a bright sunny day even with a fast lens like an f2.8 zoom, you would have about 1/2000 or 1/4000 if you shot wide open at ISO100. This is assuming a bright sunny day around noon in mid-summer so the sun is as high in the sky as it'll get, and no clouds or haze. That's really fast, and most DSLR's should have 1/4000 or higher. In most cases you'd have less light and/or want more depth of field, and 1/500 stops a lot of action.